


Movie Night

by qaffangyrl



Series: That Such Men Lived [3]
Category: Black Panther (2018), Captain America (Movies)
Genre: Bucky Barnes Recovering, Bucky and Shuri are BFFs and you can't tell me otherwise, Fluff, French Braids, M/M, Post-Black Panther (2018), Pre-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Shuri Is a Good Bro, little bit of angst but it's all good, toe nail painting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-26
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-11-05 22:16:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17927390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/qaffangyrl/pseuds/qaffangyrl
Summary: This is another little moment in myThat Such Men Livedseries but it can be read as a stand alone just like the other fics in the series. They can each be read in any order.In which Bucky and Shuri become friends......I may be a dolt at times, but even this old dog can learn a few new tricks. I’ll tell ‘ya though it’s a pain in the ass tying my hair back one handed.”“I could cut it for you,” Shuri offers.“Naw. It’s hard to explain. But having my hair this length, it’s important to me.”......he ordered Bucky to blend in. So, in keeping with the fashion of the day, Bucky grew out his hair. It was the only choice he would end up making about his own body for nearly seventy years.





	Movie Night

**April 2017 –Residence of the Royal Family- Wakanda**

Bucky steels himself. He’s been subjected to torture before. He’s confident he can withstand this. He follows two Dora Milaje through the long corridors of the palace to face what is sure to be a grueling interrogation. The door at the end of the hall opens. Bucky takes a deep breath. Then, it comes. A squeal so loud he fears his eardrums might burst.

“You’re here! I want details, you must tell me everything!” Shuri exclaims as she bounds toward Bucky. She motions to the sofa in the main parlor of her suite.

Bucky warily takes a seat and clears his throat. “It was a good visit,” he replies blandly, knowing full well he was just putting off the inevitable. Besides, if he’s going to have go through this it’s only fair to make her suffer a little too.

“A good visit? A GOOD VISIT?!? This is the first time he stayed at your place ALONE, JUST THE TWO OF--” Shuri stops abruptly mid-sentence then says, “I almost forgot. We can’t have this conversation without the appropriate provisions.” She runs to the kitchenette and returns with two pints of ice cream. “I’ve got Ben & Jerry’s!”

She hands an open pint and a spoon to Bucky who examines the container. With a look of confusion- this night is going to last forever- he asks, “What’s Phish Food?”

“A pun” Shuri laughs. The flavor is named after a 90s prog-rock band, who are overrated in my opinion, but the ice cream is delicious! It’s marsh mellow, chocolate, caramel ice cream with little fudge fishies in it. See?” She spoons out some of the ice cream and shows it to Bucky before eating the entire bite. “OH! Brain freeze!” She whines.

Bucky is delighted. “That’s what you get for asking for details. I’m a gentleman, I don’t kiss and tell.” Bucky teases.

But Shuri is unstoppable. “So, you KISSED! I knew it. What else? Did he like the stew you made for him? Did you show him your goats? What’d he think of your house? Are you two, like facebook official now or what? When’s he coming back? Hopefully soon, yes?”

“He said he’ll be back in a little over two weeks. He liked my place. He said farming suited me and that my cooking was better than what we used to make back in Brooklyn.” Bucky pauses, trying to check off the litany of questions Shuri bombarded him with, “And sorry, Doc. I got no idea what “facebook official” means.”

Shuri clucks her tongue in disapproval and sighs, “It means you two are telling people. Do his friends know about you, like as an official couple now?”

“I’m telling YOU,” Bucky hedges.

“You didn’t tell me anything. I saw your grand love story all played out inside your head when I was treating you. But, you haven’t said ANYTHING. I wasn’t even sure what was going on with you both now until the Captain sent a comm saying he wouldn’t be staying at the palace during this last visit. It’s like a cliffhanger when the next season isn’t streaming yet.”

Bucky sighs and spoons the ice cream. It’s delicious, but he’s always had quite the sweet tooth. Finally, he says, “Things between Steve and me are really good. Better than good. As for telling people. We’ve always been kinda private about this sort of thing.”

Shuri waits a beat. Her tone is suddenly gentle when she asks, “You know, it’s not something you have to keep private, right? The two Dora who escorted you here, they’re each other’s wife.”

“No, I know,” Bucky assures, “To be honest, I’m not sure what he’s said to his friends. Talking about it at all new for me. Steve is… well. Keeping his trap shut has never been his strong suit.” His own words amuse him. Steve’s just the kind of big dumb idiot who could be a leading man in those extravagant MGM musicals he likes so much, singing about how in love he is to any poor shmuck who’ll listen. Bucky then remembers all that Dr. M’gaou has been telling him about the importance of using his voice. Saying what he feels out loud. He’s never had someone he could talk to about Steve. Maybe Shuri’s enthusiastic nosiness could be good for his recovery. Resolved, Bucky playfully raises an eyebrow and asks, “So Doc, what’dya wanna know?”

***

The ice cream pints are empty and two very large bowls of popcorn are down to the kernels. Bucky and Shuri are sprawled out on the sofa as the movie is just about up to Bucky’s favorite scene. Tonight, he had suggested a screwball comedy instead of another monster movie, “You know, Steve and I went to see It Happened One Night that summer at my Aunt Ida’s.”

“And did anything _happen_ , that night?” Shuri asks as she waggles her eyebrows suggestively.

Bucky barks out a hearty laugh. Shuri sure is a gasser, Bucky thinks. He indulges her by replying, “Yeah it did, up in the hay loft, if memory serves”

At that comment Shuri cackles with delight, “I ship you two so hard you don’t even know.”

“Do I even want know what that means?”

“Probably not,” Shuri laughs.

“Oh. Here it is, the Walls of Jericho scene. When Clark Fucking Gable takes off his shirt.” Bucky would never admit it but he might have just bit his lip at the sight.

“He is quite a handsome man.” Shuri affirms.

“And how.” Bucky agrees in almost a low moan.

Shuri just giggles at him.

“See how he’s not wearing an undershirt?”

“Yes, Bucky. I see that he’s half dressed. How on earth are you going to make until Steve’s next visit if you’re this wound up?” She teases.

“I’m ignoring that comment.” Bucky admonishes. “When this flick was in the picture houses and all of America saw it, there was a seventy-four percent drop in men’s undergarment sales. Nearly killed the industry. There’s just something about a bare-chested man.” It feels good. Really good to talk openly about, not just Steve, but his desires in general. Bucky feels, what’s the word for it? Oh. Bucky realizes that in this moment he feels normal. That’s a new one for him. And Shuri treats him just like he’s any other regular person. It’s nice. He honestly can’t say he has any memory of feeling this way before.

“So, did you and Steve stop wearing undershirts? Did you contribute to the near death of fruit of the loom?” Shuri asks with a dramatic flourish.

“Geez, back in Brooklyn Steve was always in layers to keep from catching his death. I do remember, he liked me to pose for him, shirtless.”

“Pose for him?”

“Yeah,” Bucky quietly replies. A wave of melancholy washes over him. “He’s an artist. A damn good one too. Even went to school for it. Made something of a living doing ads for the Brooklyn Eagle. I can’t tell ‘ya if he puts pencil to paper at all anymore. The war changed everything for us.”

***

“I told you to hold still.” Shuri scolds.

“You’re pulling too hard!” Bucky protests.

“Don’t be such a baby. You’re the one who said you wanted braids.”

Bucky huffs, but otherwise stays silent.

“Now, I’m giving you French braids not corn rows. And why is that?” She asks.

Bucky knows she’s testing him. But he’s paid attention to her over the last several months since he’s been out of stasis. “Because there’s a fine line between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation.”

“Very good, white boy.”

“Thanks, Doc. I may be a dolt at times, but even this old dog can learn a few new tricks. I’ll tell ‘ya though it’s a pain in the ass tying my hair back one handed.”

“I could cut it for you,” Shuri offers.

“Naw. It’s hard to explain. But having my hair this length, it’s important to me.” Bucky thinks back to Col Verbinski. Serving as the Colonel’s personal bodyguard was the longest amount of time he had been allowed to stay out of the cryo-freeze. And the assignment was strictly a protection detail. No wet work. For an entire year in 1971 Bucky had been treated like an actual human being. He ate three meals a day- no IV bags for nutrition. He slept and woke at normal hours— in an actual bed with a blanket. The Colonel purchased clothes for him. The man did not what to give the impression that he was weak and needed a bodyguard, despite having had numerous death threats, that’s why he ordered Bucky to blend in. So, in keeping with the fashion of the day, Bucky grew out his hair. It was the only choice he would end up making about his own body for nearly seventy years. Everything on the detail had been going well until the Colonel got sent on a diplomatic mission to New York. That’s when Bucky felt a pull. He didn’t have his memories. He didn’t even have a name. He was simply referred to as “asset or soldier.” One day, while the Colonel was glad handing with several Soviet officials Bucky left his post. They said he had entered a fugue state – it’s one of the few memories Bucky still hasn’t recovered. All he remembers is waking up under a statue of a WWII soldier in Prospect Park- a fallen son of Brooklyn. Before he was even able to orient himself he was hauled in a van and was on the next plane out to Siberia. For some reason, when he was activated again the hose downs, the liquid nutrients, the cold floor all return but they didn’t cut his hair. His hair was his. It was the only thing that was his.

***

The movie was long past over, Bucky’s braid was finished and tied back and would likely hold for the next few days, and he may or may not made a valiant effort at painting Shuri’s toe nails. Or as she had called it, “Just a little test of your fine motor skills.”  It was time to head back to the farm. The goats needed to be fed and milked at dawn so the village children could take the jugs to market by sunup.

“Tonight was aces, Doc. Really.” Bucky says before planting a soft kiss on her cheek.

She giggles softly at his affection and gives him a hug in return. “Same time, next week?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.” And he means it. It would be easy to say that he’s just following Dr. M’gaou’s instructions to make an effort to minimize his isolation. To socialize. To build a support network. All standard recommendations for those managing symptoms of PTSD. But the truth is, he really likes Shuri, with her quick wit, prying questions and easy tenderness. The truth is, Shuri is Bucky’s friend.

The End.  

**Author's Note:**

> Here's the scene from It Happened One Night. The bit about under shirt sales is true according to some scholars. Here's the Walls of Jericho scene https://youtu.be/9zUaNKBQ04c
> 
> Also the statue that's referred to is the actual Captain America statue that was erected for the 75th anniversary of the character. I like to imagine it's real and maybe had been put up for the 25th Anniversary of Cap going into the ice which would have been 1969ish.


End file.
